Jacobs K
Département d'anthropologie, Université de Montréal, PQ, Canada.
Am J Phys Anthropol. 1992 Nov;89(3):333-45. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.1330890307.
Steele's (1970) regression method for estimating femur and tibia length from fragmentary bones is tested on a sample of complete femora (female N = 26; male N = 33) and tibiae (female N = 16; male N = 22) from a number of European Mesolithic and Neolithic sites. Over half of the regression equations given by Steele for predicting maximum length of the bone from the length(s) of one or more of its constituent segments are shown to produce inaccurate predictions in this test sample. However, a closer evaluation of these results, including calculation of regression equations for the test sample itself, reveals that this inaccuracy does not derive from any inherent flaw in Steele's method. Rather, it is shown that differential distribution of maximum bone length among the various bone segments as defined by Steele may occur due to variation in muscular activity pattern and intensity. This argues for the retention of Steele's basic method, with care being taken to match closely the activity pattern typical of the sample from which regression equations are derived with that of the population to which the equations are to be applied. The equations calculated in this study thus are provided for use where deemed appropriate.
斯蒂尔（1970年）提出的从碎骨估算股骨和胫骨长度的回归方法，在来自多个欧洲中石器时代和新石器时代遗址的完整股骨样本（女性N = 26；男性N = 33）和胫骨样本（女性N = 16；男性N = 22）上进行了测试。在这个测试样本中，斯蒂尔给出的用于根据一根或多根组成骨段的长度预测骨最大长度的回归方程，超过一半显示会产生不准确的预测。然而，对这些结果进行更仔细的评估，包括计算测试样本本身的回归方程，发现这种不准确并非源于斯蒂尔方法的任何固有缺陷。相反，研究表明，斯蒂尔所定义的各个骨段之间最大骨长度的差异分布，可能是由于肌肉活动模式和强度的变化而产生的。这表明应保留斯蒂尔的基本方法，同时要注意使推导回归方程所依据的样本的典型活动模式，与应用这些方程的人群的活动模式紧密匹配。因此，本研究计算出的方程在认为合适的情况下可供使用。
